North Korea executes Kim Jong Un's uncle
·
Aug. 14, 2012: In this file photo provided by
China's Xinhua News Agency, Jang Song Thaek, North Korea's vice chairman of the
powerful National Defense Commission, attends the third meeting on developing
the economic zones in North Korea, in Beijing. (AP/XINHUA)
North Korea announced
Thursday it had executed the uncle of leader Kim Jong Un, declaring him a
traitor who tried to overthrow the state.
The announcement came
only days after Pyongyang announced through state media that Jang Song Thaek --
long considered the country's No. 2 power -- had been removed from all his
posts because of allegations of corruption, drug use, gambling, womanizing and
leading a "dissolute and depraved life."
State news agency KCNA
said a tribunal examined Jang's crimes, including "attempting to overthrow
the state by all sorts of intrigues and despicable methods with a wild ambition
to grab the supreme power of our party and state."
The report called him
"a traitor to the nation" and "worse than a dog."
National Security
Council spokesman Patrick Ventrell said that there was no reason to doubt the
report of Jang’s death and if true, it illustrated North Korea's "extreme
brutality."
"While we cannot
independently verify this development, we have no reason to doubt the official
KCNA report that Jang Song Thaek has been executed,” Ventrell said. “If
confirmed, this is another example of the extreme brutality of the North Korean
regime. We are following developments in North Korea closely and consulting
with our allies and partners in the region."
Jang was seen as helping
Kim Jong Un consolidate power after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, two
years ago.
Some analysts see North
Korea's personnel reshuffle as a sign of Kim Jong Un's growing confidence, but
there has also been fear in Seoul that the removal of such an important part of
the North's government -- seen by outsiders as the leading supporter of
Chinese-style economic reforms -- could create dangerous instability or lead to
a miscalculation or attack on the South.
Tensions are still high
on the Korean Peninsula following a torrent of threats in March and April by
Kim Jong Un's government against Washington, Seoul and Tokyo, including vows of
missile and nuclear strikes and warnings that Pyongyang would restart nuclear
bomb fuel production.
Jang was married to Kim
Jong Un's aunt, Kim Kyong Hui, the younger sister of Kim Jong Il. He was
earlier described by state media as "abusing his power," being
"engrossed in irregularities and corruption," and taking drugs and
squandering money at casinos while undergoing medical treatment in a foreign
country.
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